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Monday, October 12, 2015

WHAT ADMIRABLE LEADERS DO

At the opening session of a recent
conference of top researchers and managers of scientific institutions from 15
nations spread across west, east and southern Africa, participants were asked
to, “Share the attributes of a leader they most admired”. The spontaneous list
of 17 items generated from the brief reflections of these institutional leaders
who had never met before save for a brief interaction at breakfast in the hotel
would suggest that the 17 items are the most immediate, common and overt
qualities of an admirable leader. However, upon close examination of this seemingly
random list of responses we find that three competencies emerge in equal
measure as attributes of an admirable leader.

Though the question was used as an introduction
to the topic of leadership, the reconstructed lists below to show a profound
depth of insight to the personal, relational and situational competencies any (admirable)
leader should work hard to develop.

The responses
fall equally into three categories and would seem to indicate that leadership
has three important perspectives of interpretation, perceptions and worldview.
There are those who see leadership as embodied in the person. Others see its
value in terms of relational competencies of the leader while still others
judge leaders by their effect on situations. While the personal qualities
listed above may have been the expected or “correct” answer to the question, the
more interesting outcome of this exercise was the participants “forced” inclusion
of these added leader competencies as “attributes” of a leader when in fact
they may be beyond the leader’s direct control. For example charisma is not a personal attribute it
only comes to light in the context of other people. A leader is also expected
to be a problem solver of issues
beyond his person!

The fact that participants listed these qualities
in response to the same question may also suggest that an admirable leader
should have and develop all three competencies in equal measure. The three
circles should intersect and expand to create the (admirable) leader. From
admirable leaders we get a clue of how to become an effective leader. It is
remarkable that the respondents were willing to attribute the quality of relationships
and achievement of outcomes outside the control of a leader to the person of a
leader! In other words an admirable leader’s job is to be a good person, manage
relationships of others and ensure successful outcomes of situations and circumstances
they may enter or find themselves in.

Good people

Leaders need to be good people. People
will and want their leaders to be good people. People need to see some good in a
person to prequalify them for leadership. This “goodness” must be available to a level
of perfection and elevation that the general population aspires to but does not
normally achieve. There may be leaders who do not qualify as good (depending on
the perception of good), but admirable leaders also score highly on relational
and situational competencies.

Relational ability

Leaders need to be effective relationship
managers. They need to effectively manage relationships between themselves and the
people, but must more importantly be able to manage relationships between
people in the organization. They need to broker, manage and effect a sense of
justice, equity and right in a team and institution. Leaders should have the
ability to step outside themselves (personal biases) to create harmony and a
sense of unity among a group of people.

Situational competence

Leaders must show themselves
capable of handling situations they may not be “to blame for”. The need to be
be willing to be accountable and dependable. They need to demonstrate an
outstanding measure of competence in specific areas. Leaders are expected to take
ownership of and change circumstances from disadvantage to the progress and
benefit for the people they lead. These leaders are celebrated for the capacity
they have to change the environment.

Conclusions

The admirable leader’s job then
is to effectively control themselves, manage other people’s relationships and ensure
adequate resolution of situations in instant and equal measure. That said, this
article suggests that initial nomination for leadership positions may be based
on the prevalence of these three “admirable” or “visible” leadership competencies.
Potential leaders vying for promotion need to develop all three competencies. While people who cannot control themselves, avoid
managing relationships among other people and do not excel in what they do cannot
expect to be recognized for leadership positions. Those already in leadership positions
may want to do a quick check on how they are faring in the public perception of
their leadership and make the necessary adjustments to secure and advance their
status and position in the organization. Interestingly, while good leader’s master
one or two circles of competencies, great leaders excel in all three!